Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/593112
70 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Chuck Lauer: The Patient Experience Revolution Has Arrived By Chuck Lauer, Former Publisher of Modern Healthcare and an Author, Public Speaker and Career Coach I t's becoming increasingly obvious to me that healthcare is entering a completely new world — one in which the patient experience is absolutely paramount. During my long career, I've seen a lot of changes in how the healthcare system deals with patients. When writing three books on healthcare leadership and leading Modern Healthcare for three decades, serving the patient was at the top of my mind. en, in recent years, I've had a number of opportunities as a patient to experience customer service — or the lack thereof. I've noticed over the years that a lot of lip service has been paid to what patients are experiencing. Now, however, it seems to me that the discussions are more forthright and candid. e whole industry is going through a reshaping and reordering process that many people are calling "the patient experience revolution." Healthcare consultant David Zimmerman, a good friend of mine, envisions patients rising up in "an insurrection against indifference." He believes this revolt is unstoppable, and he warns that our income as providers is at stake. In this new world, success will depend on how seriously we respond to patients' needs. ey want to be treated with dignity and decorum. Rather than just getting a lot of smiles, they truly want better service. Joseph Fifer, the president and CEO of HFMA, put it well in a recent column: "In this era of consumerism, people expect better information, better processes and a better understanding of what they're getting for their money. is goes way beyond the superficial consumerism of the past." Why this revolution is happening ere are quite a few reasons why the patient experience revolution is happening at this moment in time. One has to do with the rise of high deductibles and other out- of-pocket costs that many patients now have to pay. It's no big surprise that patients who are expected to cover the first $5,000 or more of care might be a bit more cost-conscious than someone with first-dollar coverage. As they pull out their wallets, patients are discovering they have a world of choices in the healthcare delivery system. ey don't even have to stick with hospitals and their ORs, outpatient clinics and services. Now patients can go to ambulatory surgery centers, freestanding imaging centers, urgent care clinics or concierge practices — to name a few. And you better believe it — the enlightened patient of today is quite willing to try something new. In a nationwide survey last year by Dignity Health, 90 percent of people said if they received unkind treatment, they'd consider finding a new provider. e patient experience is also beginning to play a major role in how hospitals and doctors are paid. Part of the payment is now oen based on measurements of how patients are treated, such as the HCAHPS survey. Hospitals are finding that performing well on the HCAHPS survey is not so easy. When CMS unveiled HCAHPS scores for U.S. hospitals this April, only 251 received the highest score — five stars — and 101 received the lowest score of one star. CMS has put these findings up on Hospital Compare website, for all patients to see. Reimbursement methodologies are also changing. In January, the government announced that by 2018, half of Medicare spending outside of managed care will be for value-based contracts – including accountable care organizations, medical homes and bundled payments. ese payments require keeping patients loyal to your organization. Again, that needs to be done through patient engagement. Patients have been dehumanized It's all too easy to dehumanize patients. You put them in that hospital gown with the opening in the back and tell them to wait on a cold metal chair. I've been in this role. You can sit there for a long time with all sorts of employees streaming by, oblivious to your presence. Erie Chapman, the former president and CEO of OhioHealth, has compared patient experience to that of a prisoner. You have been stripped down, put into a regulation outfit, and you even get a number. ank God it doesn't last very long for most of us! Mr. Chapman then made an interesting comment: If patients are viewed as prisoners, then staff can view themselves as prison guards. According to the Dignity Health survey, two-thirds of Americans have experienced unkind behavior in a healthcare setting. ese experiences include failure of a caregiver to connect on a personal level, rudeness and poor listening skills. What patients want isn't very complicated. ey want to be treated in a friendly way, with compassion, and receive running explanations about what's going on. And they don't want to wait for hours for some simple test!